Loom spool



March 1932- R. E. VICKERMAN LOOM SPOOL Filed Dec. 4, 1950 H, %M M Ma h ATTORNEY Patented Mar. 15, 1932 ROBERT E. VIGKERMAN, or PHILADELP IA, PENNSYLVANIA LOOM SPOOL Application filed December 4,1930. Serial No. 499,870.

The present invention relates to the manufacture of tufted pile fabrics and more particularly to a yarn spool for looms.

In spools as heretofore constructed it has been necessary for the setting operator to draw the yarns well across the body of the spool and hold them while an assistant clamps a bar in place to hold the yarn ends so that the yarn can be wound upon the spool. This initial placing of the yarn requires an end of six to twelve inches to properly draw the yarn across the spool and when the clamp bar is in place this excess end yarn is cut off close to the bar and becomes waste material. Furthermore when the operator pulls the yarn taut there are so many strands in the group being drawn that they converge toward the point of pull and thereby cross the spool as converging strands instead of parallel strands as they should be in order to unwind in usable condition while in the loom. After the spool has been wound the clamp bar is pulled out by main strength or by a pulling device and the spool then goes to the threading machine for attachment to the tube frame. It will thus be seen that the wound spool has no means for holding the ends of the yarn to the spool except the over wound coils of the yarn itself and when these are Wound off by feeding the yarn in the process of weaving in the loom these ends uncoil 'before the last revolution of the spool and hang in a more or less tangled mass over the side of the tuft frame. These unwrapped ends are rendered useless for weaving and have to be cut off so that there is a loss of yarn in unwinding the spool in addition to the loss which takes place during the winding operation.

Some of the objects of the present invention are to provide an improved spool for winding yarn; to provide a spool wherein each yarn thread is anchored to the spool during winding and is so held until the yarn is completely unwound from the spool; to provide a yarn spool which prevents the end waste of yarn inherent in present day yarn spools; to provide a yarn spool which delivers its yarn to the loom in usable condition throughout the entire length of the yarn; to p-rovidea yarn anchoring means for. a "spool which functions effectively for-reverse wound spools; to provide a yarn spool wherein the use of a clamping bar for winding purposes is dispensed with; and to provide other improvements as will'hereina'fter appear.

In the accompanying drawings Fig. 1 represents a side elevation of ayarn spool'embodying one form of the presentinvention; oo Fig. 2 represents a section therethrough; 3 represents aplan'of a nion of-the spool showing the yarn ends -in place'; and Fig. '4 is asection showing the retained yarn. end as the yarn leaves through .the tuft frame. i a Referring to the drawings one form of the present invention consists of a yarn spool 10 having the usual winding bodyll: and

end flanges 12 which hold the wound yarn 7 against lateral displacement. v

For anchoring the ends of the yarn strands 13 to the body 11, a plurality of parallel grooves or narrow slits 14 are cut transversely of the body 11 and extend longitudinally 7 thereof throughout the length thereof. Each of these slits 14 so dimensioned as toallo'w a strand of yarn to be pressed into it and there held by the compressing action against pulling out by the ordinary winding tension. This compressing action however is insuflicient to resist the straight pull exerted when being drawn through the tube frame and hence holds the yarn until the last convolution thereof is completely unwrapped from the spool. y

. In order to facilitate the initial placing of the yarn strands in the respective slits 14, a groove 15 is out longitudinally of the body 11 intercepting all of the slits 14 with an undercut efiect which give a desirable clear ance for pressing each yarn strand well down into its slot 14 for holding purposes. This also makes possible a very short loose end and avoids the long end waste heretofore necessary at the start of ordinary spoolwinding. The general effect of the clearance undercutting is to form a comb or row of guide teeth 16 which are preferably tapered with wound evenly and V tive last convolution in a converging shape to more easily allow the yarn strands to be inserted.

It will now be apparent that a complete unitary spool structure has been devised wherein defects and disadvantages of the long 'used ordinary spool with its locking bar are overcome, namely the trouble incident to placing the bar in place for a winding operation; the forcible removal of the bar after winding; the long lengths of strand ends wasted at the start of the win-ding operation; and the loss of the ends during a tufting operation. Fur thermore it will be seen-that-the spool of the present invention can be wound in both directions so that it is equally, applicable for reverse winding where the pattern so requires. Also all of the yarn strands are unwind the same way so that crossed strands are avoided and the ends leaving the spool do so simultaneously.

In Fig. 4 illustration is made of the relaposition of the spool lOto'the tuft yarn frame 17 with the yarn '13 through the guide tubej18 and from'which it willbe seen that the last convolutionof yarn on the spool has been unwound without release of the end of the yarn because such end is held by the grip of the slit 14. In spools as ordinarily wound there is no means provided for retaining this place and hence it falls off of. the spool and has to be cut away as I Waste. The device of the present invention versely arranged narrow ting said slits to efiects a great saving ofyarn because this end waste, as wellas that during the initial winding, is eliminated.

Having thus described my invention, 1' claim:

1. As a new article of manufacture a yarn spool-having a plurality of parallel transyarn receiving slits across its body.

2. As a new article of manufacture a yarn spool having a longitudinally disposed row of narrow single yarn receiving slits across its body.

3. A yarn spool comprising a spool body having a plurality of narrow yarn receiving slits across its body and a groove undercutform a row of guide teeth.

4:. A yarn spool comprising a spool body having a plurality of narrow yarn receiving and retaining slits across its body, and means providing a clearance at one end of said slits for receiving theends of said yarn.

5. A yarn spool comprising aspool body provided with a seri'es of parallel chordal narrow slits,- and yarn guide means between each of the slits.

. Signed at Philadelphia, county of Philadelphia, State of Pennsylvania, this 29th day of November, 1930. j r

ROBERT E. VICKERMAN.

yarn due to unwrapping of 

